1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the field of entertainment systems. More particularly, this invention relates to selecting from multiple versions of a television program for display in an entertainment system.
2. Background
A recent trend in the electronics and computer industry is the convergence of computer systems and more traditional entertainment system components. Such convergence allows an increasingly broad range of information to be made available for system users over and above the broadcast television programming which has long been provided via conventional televisions. Accompanying this convergence is the expansion of television programming transport media (e.g., the mechanism or xe2x80x9cpipexe2x80x9d via which the programming is transported to the television). While analog broadcasts and analog cable were once the standard transport media for television programming, digital cable and digital satellite systems are becoming more and more commonplace. Additionally, other transport media, such as digital broadcasts, are starting to appear as options for viewers.
Using different transport media has increased the number of sources from which television programming can be received, and thus has also increased the number of television programs available for viewing. These increases are due to both the increase in number of transport media, as well as the additional bandwidth capabilities of some of the newer types of transport media. Additionally, other xe2x80x9clocalxe2x80x9d sources (e.g., video cassette recorders) can also supply programming, thereby further increasing the programming options available to users.
One problem facing users with these increased television programming options is the possibility for the receipt of multiple versions of essentially the same program from multiple sources. For example, two different sources may be broadcasting the same movie at approximately the same time. Differences may exist between these multiple versions and because of these differences a user may prefer to view one over the other. However, given the large selection of television programming options available to the user, locating such different versions can be difficult. Furthermore, the ability for the user to know which version he or she prefers is often difficult, as these differences are typically not made available to the user.
Therefore, a need exists for an improved way to select from multiple versions of a television program.
A method and apparatus for selecting from multiple versions of a television program is described herein. According to one aspect of the present invention, a computerized method includes identifying multiple versions of a television program that are available from one or more different sources, and displaying a selected one of the multiple versions of the television program.
According to one aspect of the present invention, an article includes a storage medium, the storage medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions that, when executed by a processor, result in identifying multiple versions of a television program that are available from one or more different sources, and displaying a selected one of the multiple versions of the television program.
According to one aspect of the present invention, an apparatus includes a selection controller to identify multiple versions of a television program that are available from one or more different sources, and a device controller, coupled to the selection controller, to display a selected one of the multiple versions of the television program.